Israeli Airstrike Targets Hezbollah Leader Hashem Safieddine in Beirut, Reports Say

Jerusalem, 4th October 2024: An Israeli airstrike in Beirut aimed at senior Hezbollah figure Hashem Safieddine, who is considered a potential successor to the late Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, according to Reuters sources.

Neither the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) nor Hezbollah in Lebanon has issued an official statement regarding the strike.

The attack occurred just after midnight on Thursday, involving a significant barrage of airstrikes, reportedly while Safieddine was attending a meeting of top Hezbollah officials in an underground bunker, as reported by The New York Times. This bombardment marks one of the heaviest in the region since the death of Nasrallah.

According to Axios, citing Lebanese media, the scale of the Israeli strike was considerably larger than the one that resulted in Nasrallah’s death, though the exact number of casualties remains unknown.

Designated a terrorist by the United States in 2017, Safieddine plays a crucial role in Hezbollah’s political framework and is a member of the group’s Jihad Council, overseeing military operations. As a cousin of Nasrallah, he is often regarded as Hezbollah’s “number two” and maintains strong connections with the Iranian regime.

Nasrallah had appointed Safieddine to several key positions within Hezbollah’s various councils, some of which are less publicized. He has served as a spokesperson for the group on numerous occasions.

In addition, the U.S. State Department, along with Saudi Arabia, has labelled him a terrorist since 2017.

Meanwhile, Israel has claimed responsibility for the death of another senior Hezbollah official, Mohammed Anisi, who was reportedly involved in the group’s precision-guided missile development, during a recent airstrike targeting Hezbollah’s intelligence division in Beirut.

Hezbollah has yet to respond to Israel’s assertions.

On Thursday, a series of powerful explosions rocked the southern suburbs of Beirut, resulting in multiple fatalities and causing buildings to shake several kilometres away in the Lebanese capital, as Israel intensified its offensive against Hezbollah.